20161224

Former New York Police Department Chief and current commissioner of the Office of Emergency Management Joseph Esposito will stand trial for police brutality and malicious prosecution related to the arrest of an Occupy Wall Street protester.

John Scott Dekuyper, 58, was arrested at an Occupy Wall Street protest in Times Square in October 2011. While he was only one of 92 people arrested in Times Square, video footage taken at the scene depicted an officer repeatedly punching Dekuyper in the head. Now over five years later, a judge has granted Dekuyper permission to file a civil rights suit against Esposito and two officers involved, Shreeganes Meade and Patrick Mullane.

According to Dekuyper’s attorney, the conflict began when he joined an Occupy Wall Street march from Manhattan’s Lower East Side up to Times Square. Once the participants reached the tourist hub, a messy melee broke out between protesters and law enforcement. Esposito, who was acting NYPD chief, responded and attempted to corral the crowds by blocking the protesters off with barriers and ordering police horses to go into the crowds...